Google launches cheap Chromebook laptop

Google is launching its new low-priced Chromebook laptop as rivals Microsoft and Apple prepare to release their latest gadgets, Sky News reported.

The lightweight computer will sell in the UK for around 200 and $249 in the US. It will go on sale early next week.

It is being made in a partnership with Samsung, which also makes smartphones and tablet computers that run on Google's Android software.

The laptop, which does not have a hard drive, will run on an operating system revolving around Google's Chrome Web browser.

It functions like a terminal dependent on an Internet connection to get to information and applications stored in large data centers run by Google or other technology providers.

It is the least expensive Chromebook that Google has released in the two years that it has been working on the product line.

Google and Samsung released a slightly more sophisticated Chromebook priced at $449 (280) in the late spring.

Now it appears to be trying to get ahead of its rivals.

Microsoft is poised to release Windows 8, a dramatic makeover of its famous operating system, on October 26.